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Arco del Virrey de Perú

Melchor de Navarra y Rocafull Martínez de Arroytia y Vique (*Torrelacárcel, 1626 – †Portobello, 1691) was a Spanish colonial administrator and Viceroy of Peru.

He was a collegiate of Oviedo, in Salamanca, and after holding various posts in the councils of Naples and Italy, he was appointed viceroy of Peru between 1681 and 1689, arriving in Lima on 20 November 1681.

At the end of his term, on 15 August 1689, he remained in Lima until 1691, pending the investigation of his administration. He then sailed to Spain to take up the presidency of the Consulate of Aragon, but died during the voyage, on 13 April of that year, in Portobello, Panama. According to Ricardo Palma “he was the most viceroy viceroy that Peru ever had”.

The Viceroyalty of Peru was a territorial entity, part of the Spanish Empire, established by the Spanish Crown during its period of American rule. It was created by King Charles I, by means of the Royal Charter.

 

Today, this arch has been recovered and restored and forms part of the town’s sports complex, as it presides over the entrance to a large, well-equipped sports centre, which occupies the Viceroy’s former quarters.

Even inside this new sports building, some of the holes in the floor have been preserved, carved in stone and circular in shape, which were found in the earth that occupied the Viceroy’s quarters. It is thought that they were used as refrigerators to preserve food and grain.

 

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